Concomitentes launches the third edition of Mediation Academy

The Mediation Academy, an online training space to foster social transformation through art, is this time focusing on artistic mediation strategies in the face of an authoritarian drift.

Please review the schedules and all the details:

On this occasion, the Mediation Academy: Artistic Mediation versus Authoritarian Drift will take place between 14 and 24 September.

“Hate is learned, and if it's learned, it can be unlearned,” said Pamela Palenciano a few months ago at a Parliamentary Conference on youth and the far-right.

Surveys and media discourse paint a current socio-political landscape marked by the rise of authoritarianism internationally. This phenomenon is primarily observed in the culture wars. Here, feminist, anti-racist, and ecological responses are interpreted as elements of social polarisation. In this context, what are the possibilities for cultural mediation? What specific challenges do we face in artistic spaces? What socio-cultural tools do we have at our disposal? Can we dismantle these culture wars? Can we contribute narratives that take us out of confrontation as a driver of thought?

The 2026 edition of Mediation Academy aims to analyse these possibilities Opening a space for debate and sharing of resources for cultural mediation in these times of social polarisation.

TEACHING STAFF AND CONTENTS

• «How to build a common destiny. Open conversation with Lucrecia Martel, Film director and screenwriter.
  
• «Something that ties the centre’s hands in the face of injustice’«. Session led by Lucía Egaña, artist, curator, writer, independent researcher and educator.
  
• Gender-based violence and adolescence: tools drawn from experience, with Pamela Palenciano, journalist and feminist activist.
  
• The Milk Tales: Tactics and Tools for Disputed Territories. Session led by La querencia, a collective that uses participatory art and cultural mediation to work on projects closely linked to the defence of the local area and climate activism.
  
• Rethinking discourses on adolescence through a self-critical lens that examines adult privilege. Session led by Massa Salvatge, a collective that imagines, develops, and promotes critical imaginaries around an anti-adultist perspective on education, art, and culture.
  
• Participating in times of political scepticism: trajectories, challenges and possibilities. Session led by Ernesto Ganuza, a researcher at the IPP (CSIC) and a member of the coordinating team for a Citizens’ Convention comprising people selected by lottery to rethink the tourism model on the island of Gran Canaria.

Furthermore, Javi Vaquero, by Intersection will be responsible for the accompaniment in the PRACTICAL modality. Laintersección is a collective of communicators, researchers, activists, and artists who work in the field of narrative change, digital research, and communication strategies with social impact. Las Hortensias, Broders, and Plumas de Pueblo are some of their projects.

What are we looking for with Mediation Academy?

– To contribute, from an intellectual perspective, context-specific theoretical frameworks designed to promote cultural mediation grounded in the social and political spheres.

– Strengthening the capacity of cultural workers for the development of participatory methodologies.

– To create opportunities for professionals with extensive experience and new professionals to meet and build professional networks together.

For whom?

Professionals in the cultural sector (including those working in cultural mediation, curation, cultural management, arts education and cultural development, amongst others) and postgraduate students.

The programme may also be of interest to all kinds of professionals keen to integrate and apply what they have learnt about new methodologies relating to citizen participation and artistic creation.

How much does it cost and how do I enrol?

The course is available with two enrolment options:

LISTENING: 10 hours | 6 teachers x 90 minutes | Price: €80 (including VAT) 68 € (after applying the 15%* discount*)

PRACTICAL SESSION: 10 hours | 6 tutors × 90 minutes + 15 hours of mentored sessions in small groups | Price: €130 (VAT included) 110,50 € (after applying the 15%* discount*)

*15% discount on registration fees for bookings made before 30 July. Those who have taken part in previous editions of the Mediation Academy are eligible for this discount throughout the entire registration period (this discount cannot be combined with other offers).

Once the tuition fee has been paid, it will be non-refundable, either partially or in full.

Delivery method and language

100% Online. All classes will be taught in Spanish.

Any doubts? Any requests?

We are available at mediationacademy@concomitentes.org.